𝕊𝕡𝕚𝕣𝕚𝕥 || 𝕂𝕪𝕠 𝕊𝕠𝕙𝕞𝕒

Ramen Sounds Nice

*cw: mentions of child abuse and death

The days truly were busy ones. Work and chores took up most of Hiyori's time, as did their frequent visits to the hospital. On top of that, even without exams to worry about, somehow schoolwork was somehow piling up.

Or maybe that was just Hiyori's incompetence.

The point is that she's been busier than ever. And while some people may have found that to be a bad thing, Hiyori actually preferred it that way. It meant she had things to occupy her mind. It meant being distracted from the things she didn't want to think about. There were quite a few of those.

'I can't believe it...The Culture Festival is already over. And that means the New Year will be coming up soon.' She glanced up at the ceiling. 'Soon enough, we'll be third years...'

On that Saturday morning, she was clearing the table after breakfast when the porch doors shot open without warning. The loud noise startled her into nearly dropping the dishes, but the culprits didn't seem to notice.

"Guten morgen!"

"Gluten mor-gem!"

Lowering his newspaper, Shigure raised his eyebrows. "Oh, Momiji. Miyu."

Hiyori smiled. "Morning, you two."

"It's good to see you." Tohru came over from the kitchen.

"To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Momiji held up a DVD case above his head. "The DVD of the play is finally ready! I thought we could all watch it together!"

Tohru gasped. "That sounds wonderful! We can really see it for ourselves?"

"Mm-hm!" Taking off her coat, Miyumi tossed it in Shigure's face. "I'm so excited! Now Tohru and Hiyori can see Tohru and Hiyori in the play!"

Momiji ran up to the TV. "Let's watch it right now!"

"Sure!" Hiyori nodded. "We just have to finish cleaning these dishes first."

"I'll help!"

And just like that, Momiji snatched the bowls from Hiyori's hands and Miyumi piled the rest of the plates in her own small arms. Hiyori was left to blink as they headed straight for the kitchen to take care of the cleaning themselves.

Having taken Miyumi's coat off his head, Shigure sighed. "Just think; if those two were always around, you girls wouldn't have to lift a finger."

Sharing a glance, Tohru and Hiyori giggled.

~🦋~

"This really is amazing..!" Leaning forward, Tohru stared at the TV. "I can't believe I'm seeing the play in front of me..." She blinked. "Do I...really sound like that..?"

"You're adorable, Tohru." Shigure smiled.

"Yeah!" Miyumi nodded. "I told you! You're like a princess!"

She flushed. "I-I wouldn't say that! But, um, thank you..."

Giggling, Hiyori nudged her. "You made an amazing stepsister."

"Same to you!"

When Kyo and Uo's first scene came up, Momiji grinned. "Oh! And Prince Kyo is really something to see, too!"

"...What are you doing?"

They all turned to see the real Kyo in the doorway. Shigure pouted at him. "Aw, your tone is cold as ever, Kyo!"

"Welcome home!" Hiyori beamed.

"Where were you running so early in the morning?" Momiji asked him.

Without a word, Kyo stormed up to snatch the remote from the table. They could do nothing but watch him turn off the TV. "Ah!"